


and in Christmas you tell the truth

by MTBlack



Category: The 100 (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Coffee Shops & Cafés, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-12-26
Updated: 2018-12-26
Packaged: 2019-09-28 00:29:50
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,936
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17172419
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MTBlack/pseuds/MTBlack
Summary: What happens when you don’t act up on an immediate connection? A little insecure Bellamy meets with bad timing and an elusive Clarke.





	and in Christmas you tell the truth

**Author's Note:**

> Hi john-mulaneys! Hope you had a terrific Xmas and that you got many happy presents, lot of joy and food. Without further ado, please enjoy my humble attempt of Bellarke meeting in a Coffee Shop.

**December, 2017**

* * *

When Bellamy Blake first opened his coffee shop, it looked nothing like what he had envisioned. But it was opened, it had nearly paid her sister’s meager salary in the first day and it promisingly seemed to be on the path to pay the investment on its own and put food in their mouths.

All that had been a few months ago now, he was now debating whether to stay open a few more hours for any customer with a death wish venturing outside on a super storm or closed and run the three blocks separating him from home before the storm worsened. It was around 5.30 in the afternoon and the cold shower had become cold snow long ago. He was starting to fear he would end up spending the night at the café if he didn’t make up his mind soon.

His phone rang softly in his pocket with a message from Octavia. He sent a heart emoji and the one with the tight grin as response after reading she was packed up at home with canned food supposed to last for a week, enough power banks to marathon Friends for the night and her boyfriend with her. It was not that he disliked Lincoln, it was more him enjoying pretending he did.

At six, he realized that he had no chance to make it safely home. As he waited for the snow to slow down, it had only increased, and the winds were raging outside. He looked at the road that glistened with ice and how the fluorescent lights of the Hospital across the street seemed frozen and distant.

He decided to call it a day and got up to make himself some coffee as he closed the place. Bellamy was pulling down the curtains when he found her, curled up on one of the chairs, covered in at least two snow jackets and dangerously holding a mug with her hand over her knee.

‘Oh, shit.’

She had managed to remain unseen as she was doubled over herself on one of the largest armchairs. He made a mental note to rearrange it so it would face the counter instead. As he safely removed the mug from her grasp and left it on the table, he realized how dead beat she must have been to not even attempt to wake up from his moving her around. He pressed her hand to her shoulder and shook her softly.

‘Hey, wake up,’ he started softly. A few strands of hair fell from her woolen hat. ‘I’m sorry, but we are closing’, he insisted a little louder. She blinked her eyes opened and look at him briefly before freezing and finally moving away from him.

‘What time is it?’ She asked, her voice groggy, patting wet hair away from her face. Bellamy recognized her at once. She was one of the new doctors from the hospital. Once she stretched her legs, he recognized the distinctive blue scrubs.

‘Hey, doc. I didn’t mean to startle you, but you really need to tell them to come get you or you are going to get stuck here.’

The girl nodded and moved to stand. ‘I’m sorry, I just wanted something hot to drink and I was supposed to meet with someone here…’ she trailed off looking at the storm, he followed his gaze where the lights on the street flickered.

‘Maybe the storm prevented him from getting here, I heard it’s already bad upstate.’

She nodded, but he had a feeling she wasn’t listening.

‘Do you think you can wait a moment until I go to the bathroom? I left my phone charging there.’

‘Sure,’ he looked at her and then over the window. He could give her time, he was not so sure about the weather. Once she got back, she found him in one of the largest sofas by the heater with a big cup of chocolate and surrounded with a few magazines crosswords.

She still looked as she wasn’t completely awake, and he find it kind of endearing.

‘You were right, he is upstate, and I can’t get back to the hospital… I hope you don’t mind,’ she trailed off, uncertain.

Bellamy nodded and got up.

‘Do you want your usual? Or would you like something a bit stronger to wake up?’ She was new but having come almost every morning for a week had made him memorize her order. He had not meant that as anything and couldn’t help but smile when she looked at him apologetically. Bellamy smiled softly. ‘If you are thinking we are here because of you, I think it’s actually the other way around. My barista warned me against staying open for long, if I had started closing earlier, I would have woken you up. But I guess I’m greedy as that.’

The girl smiled brightly. ‘You don’t strike as the greedy type, I just think you got distracted.’

‘Quite the eye, doc. Now, what can I get you? It’s on the house. Don’t even think about it.’

* * *

It turned out Doc’s name was Clarke Griffin and her accent was Australian for real. She had accepted a fellowship as Emergency Medical Specialist, which basically meant she received, triaged and worked on every Emergency case that got on the hospital – trauma or not.

‘It’s mostly runny noses, sprained ankles and food poisoning.’

‘So, no axe to the head?’

Clarke looked at him funnily. ‘I would not have pegged you for a Grey’s Anatomy fan.’

Bellamy shrugged unintimidated.

‘It’s entertainment.’

They had been talking for the past hour and she had already mocked him for his love of soccer and her mom fanatism, which grew awkward when he let her know nonchalantly that she had passed way a few years ago.

‘It’s alright, you really need to stop apologizing,’ he chuckled. ‘I was being an ass, you caught me off guard, almost no one realizes my name comes from an English soccer player. My mom was the sickest fan.’

And that is the opening Clarke found to talk about his father. And his passion for helping that delve in him going to Australia to work with aboriginal communities and improve their quality of life.

When he died, Clarke and her mom had packed her things and moved back to the States, the only sane thing to do in her mom’s words. Jake Griffin had died two years ago and almost a world away, but Clarke’s hurt sounded so fresh that Bellamy found himself reaching for her hand over the table.

‘I’m sorry. I know how empty those words may sound still, but I promise that time would make it all better.’ She nodded. ‘Sometimes, I still think he’s going to text me or leave me a voice message and…’

‘I used to do the same,’ Bellamy paused. ‘If you promise not to laugh, I’d tell you something.’ Clarke nodded solemnly crossing her heart and smiled briefly. ‘Sometimes I talk to her, especially when I feel like becoming an only child. I talk with her out loud.’

Clarke’s laugh was loud and clear and reverberated over the soft playlist still sounding in the café. The warmth of it seemed to strengthen the warmth of the lights and all Bellamy felt beyond comfortable. Though he would not admit it just yet.

‘You promised not to laugh.’

She grinned at him. ‘It’s just that I imagine you fighting with your sister in a very Lilo and Nani fashion,’ as she took in her confused look, her surprise took her over’. Lilo from Lilo and Stich. What? You haven’t watched it?’

At 10, with the storm at its worst, and lights flickering more often than not, several Lilo and Stitch movie clips in, Bellamy told her about the sleeping bags he had for cases like this, and the mattress in the back room.

‘You can’t tell my sister, but there were days that I was just too tired to go back home. So, I bought a mattress’.

Clarke beamed. ‘I’m no one to judge, I lived in the Hospital until I got caught.’

* * *

Everything was developing so easily and simple that Bellamy did not want to force it. He brought the mattress next to the heater and extended both sleeping bags on it. He lied down and after a few moments, so did Clarke.

Right on cue, power went out and only the blue light of the heater lighted their faces.

‘You can’t think I planned this, because I just met you,’ he started to say chuckling nervously. He had decided that he really cared for her opinion about him.

‘I wasn’t going to think that, but now I’ll mull it over until I found a plausible explanation for this turn of events,’ she turned to face him. ‘I have a question, though, which I think I may be afraid to ask but I am unable not to, why two?’

‘Raven, my barista, has stayed over as well. If you don’t report us, I’d tell you that we had sometimes drunk after office hours.’

Clarke once again laughed at him. ‘I won’t report you, but you should withhold your information until the other person promises that’.

Bellamy blinked twice, dawning finally on what had happened. And joined Clarke laughing.

‘It’s just that I’m so tired,’ he sighed.

‘Me too,’ replied a soft voice.

* * *

Raven, the barista, and Octavia, the sister, had found them in the early hours of the morning and they had become the topic of every conversation both at the café and the Hospital. They had sworn nothing had happened that day and simply shared what Raven would later recount as heavily charged innuendos. That is, until Bellamy and his inability to deal with feelings spiked with Clarke’s inability to acknowledge her own had met with Lexa and her strong energy.

Lexa had been a regular customer. She was a gym instructor that had Ristretto on Mondays and Chai Tea Latte around 9 on Wednesdays and Fridays who ran into Clarke a Tuesday morning. Literally ran into her, eyes glued to her phone and mug on her hand when Bellamy was asking Clarke to Octavia’s newly tradition of having a Christmas’ Eve party. And had been forced to invite her, too. And a few other customers that were in line at the time. The coffee on Clarke’s clothes had prompted a conversation after what he felt as a rushed acceptance to his invitation and fate was later sealed at the party.

* * *

**Christmas’ Eve 2018**

Bellamy came out from his office at the same time Raven rushed behind the counter. ‘I’ve got news, exciting news, you, big dumb boy’

It had been a long time since she had last worked at the café. She was about to get her major in Bioengineering, but she liked to drop by from time to time, often with the sole purpose of bothering him and terrorize the new baristas, Jasper and Monty.

‘Hi, Raven. It’s nice to see you again. Would you be so kind to go back to the other side of the counter?’ He prompted as he walked her towards the other side. ‘Last time you were found here, our health inspector threatened to fine us because of your dirty hands.’

‘My hands are not dirty,’ she looked at her permanently greased-stained fingers due to her never-ending hobby of fixing her ex-boyfriend’s old motorbike. ‘Besides, I no longer work here, and I grab the food I eat only’.

‘The more reason for you not to be here, then,’ he then turned towards Monty who was cleaning up the espresso machine. ‘Do not let her in here or my office, guys. She’s all bark and no bite, I promise.’

As Monty did not at all seemed reassured by that, Bellamy turned around to find Raven glaring at him.

‘What? I used to have Octavia breathing on my neck when she was no longer working here; it’s like a tradition.’

‘Is that so?’

‘Totally. Octavia was the biggest mean around here,’ she nodded, munching on the cheese bun she had managed to sneak out before Bellamy dragged her out. ‘Speaking of tradition, you are coming to the party tonight, right?’

Bellamy sighed. He had argued a few times this month about the party; first with Octavia, then with Raven, even Clarke had joined the few times she had been around, and then, surprisingly Monty and Jasper had insisted as well.

‘Do I really have a choice?’

‘Do you really hate parties so much?’

It was not parties particularly. It was this party and a particular blonde girl hanging around a particular brunette on a place heavy on mistletoes and them not shy in PDA. Raven’s eyes were intent on him as she was clearly expecting an answer.

‘No, it’s just…’

‘Clarke and Lexa are over,’ well maybe, just half an answer.

‘She was around here before you came out and she was looking for you.’ She wiggled her eyebrows reading into his expression. Bellamy thought he had managed to hide his excitement well under some heavy surprise. ‘I think she was thinking of inviting you out.’

‘No way.’ Raven nodded enthusiastically. ‘It won’t last. It never does.’

Now she rolled her eyes at him. ‘They broke up almost three months ago.’

‘That is not very long ago.’

‘Oh, gosh, you’re like the King of Denial, dude,’ said Jasper who just got back from his break and was taking his place by the register. ‘What happened to that whole speech this morning about Monty needing to be more positive and invite Nathan out before someone else beats him to it?’

‘It’s not the same,’ he mumbled, getting uncomfortable at all the attention. Not only Jasper and Raven were looking at him, Monty from the back was listening and he was pretty sure, a few customers were tuning down their conversations to listen to him.

‘How come is not the same?’

‘Bellamy, I’ve seen you two dance around an incredible tension for months. I’ve never seen someone last that long.’

‘Are you afraid?’ This time it was Monty getting into the conversation. Bellamy huffed and quickly left the three of them staring at his back.

‘I need to go talk to a supplier,’ he announced, walking into the cold street.

Normally, it wouldn’t have really mattered. It was just another party, but with the approaching festivities he had made himself a promise to let go of any ideas of her. For the simple reason, that she was clearly not interested. But this sudden news couldn’t help but light a little hope that maybe not all was lost.

But he had a thing with timing. He had thought of kissing her that first night together, but had fallen asleep, then inviting her to Octavia’s party but had fumbled over his words until Lexa had barged in. And now… he wasn’t sure what he wanted to do.

Too much idealization, he thought, though he would always come back to the fact that the connection was real. She had spent many hours at the coffee shop after that first day, even at the early stages of her relationship with Lexa and they seemed to click – not in an I agree with you on everything, and I can’t believe we like the same things Jasper and his new girlfriend seemed to be, but in a challenging fun way. When he said he wanted to try and start playing jazz as background music, she would cite all the downsides of

jazz music – she had even managed to find papers on it. The time she said she was thinking of adopting a cat, he had no trouble in reminding her of her awful work schedule and long commute. After every conversation he was left with the feeling of wanting more, of getting to know more of her.

Whenever he read a significant piece of news, or saw something remotely interesting, he felt like sharing it with her first. They had discussed several important topics over the months, like literature when he had started stocking the shelves with his own books on Mythology and Ancient History, like the evolution of homosexuality representation and racism in media and women’s rights. At a point, around October, when her schedule had fallen into a decent pattern of going to the Café early in the morning and before heading home, he was constantly reminded of the Fox in the Little Prince – a book suggestion she had made. And the thought terrified him more than he cared to admit.

* * *

The first time Octavia had decided she was going to throw a Christmas’ Eve Party, it had only been her and Bellamy getting drunk at a bar. The following year, they already had the café, so they had invited a few friends slash customers, Lincoln and Octavia were already dating and the house had been crowded. Probably due to O’s ability to be the life and soul of the party, it had been a huge success. The girl who pasted post-its over almost every coffee brand and machine at work had managed to pull a fantastic party for almost 20 people in two days and a half – alcohol and food included. Now the feat seemed to be repeated with almost twice the attendance and at the café, after they realized that the hardest part was not organizing but cleaning.

When Bellamy arrived around 9 after leaving before lunch, he found himself with a completely different space. Looking more like the hipster-cozy Starbucks Octavia still wanted to see. As he greeted her, he managed to admit it did look great. Octavia beamed at him.

There were Christmas light everywhere, trays filled with gingerbread cookies on the counter along with several bottles of varying degrees of alcohol. The tables have been moved to the sides to allow for a dance floor. Their TV was in a corner, next to the computer for ‘Karaoke purposes’.

Lincoln and Raven appeared from the back with several dips and bowls with snacks.

‘Merry Christmas, bitches!’

‘Merry Christmas, to you too, Raven.’

‘I’m glad you came out of your cave, man,’ Lincoln said greeting him and Bellamy had to laugh.

As people started to pour in, Bellamy found himself preparing drinks and slowly starting to relax. Even though he had never fully realized he was nervous, it was just a party, nothing would change.

By 11.30 he wondered if she was going to come. Raven had not spilled any more information about her coming to the party and he did not want to raise an interrogation by inquiring. The music was full on and the alcohol was running. A few people were trying their hand at the Karaoke corner, some of them were dancing along whatever song they decided to sing but most were laughing at the show the singers were putting on.

Bellamy was amongst the sober ones and debating between calling it an early night. He decided to do something for a change.

Grabbing a glass, he poured some coke and rum on it and found some mint leaves below the counter, he added a pink umbrella and took a photo with his phone.  _Cuba Libre waiting for the Doc_ , he texted and put the phone back in his pocket. He was smiling at himself when the door opened, and he could not believe his luck.

There she was, bundled up again in more layers than normal and a red Santa hat… followed by a guy who was holding her hand.

For the second time in a day, Bellamy took off.

* * *

He had been successfully hiding for a few minutes when a voice startled him.

‘I knew I’d found you here,’ Clarke walked into his office and managed to greet him with a kiss on the cheek before sitting next to him on the floor by the door.

‘Merry Christmas, Bell.’

She smelled of perfume and vodka and he smiled.

‘Merry Christmas, Clarke. I was just…’

‘Drinking on your own?’ She supplied, taking Jose Cuervo’s bottle from his hand.

‘I guess so.’

‘Word on the street is that you are avoiding me,’ she looked at him, her blue eyes glistening under the fluorescent lights. ‘That’s funny…’

‘Was it Raven?’ He interrupted her unable to deny her statement.

‘And Octavia. I usually say word on the street when there’s more than one person, otherwise I go with a little bird,’ she giggled softly and leaned her head against his shoulder. ‘What I was going to say, before you so rudely interrupted me was that it was funny because I was the one avoiding you…’

‘You were avoiding me?’

‘I thought you’d noticed I hadn’t been coming every day.’ ‘

I did, I just blamed it on your schedule,’ he paused. ‘Why did you avoid me?’

She opened her mouth several times before she finally settled on her words ‘I was expecting you did something…’ He looked at her curiously, the proximity reminded her of that very first night they had spent together, and he leaned closer.

‘What?’ He whispered.

‘This’, Clarke breathed out, leaning forward as well and closing the distance between their mouths. Lips pressed together against his and Bellamy wondered briefly on the why’s and how’s and what the fuck’s before breathing in and finally giving in into the kiss. His hand framed her face and pressed further, repositioning themselves and a part of him started to realize that it was finally happening.

‘Wait,’ he cursed at himself as he moved away. ‘What about the dude with you? And what do you mean avoiding me?’

Clarke looked at him funnily. ‘Do you really want to talk now?’

He smirked. ‘Not really, but my conscience won’t let me be,’ he sighed getting closer to her. ‘I’ve been trying to do things right this whole time, like in the right moment and place, because you have grown to be… ’ he breathed in and briefly closed his eyes, ‘quite important for me and I didn’t want to ruin it with some uncalled for feelings’.

Clarke looked at him and leaned closer, once again. Only this time, it was their foreheads that touched. ‘I’ve been dealing with that kind of feelings, too. Actually, Lexa pointed them out before storming out and, ’she trailed off, looking anywhere but him. ‘And I sorta freaked out when I realized, I was more excited when I was about to see you for five minutes than talking with my girl back at home’.

‘Like the fox…’

‘From the Little Prince, yeah.’

‘And when Wells and I watched Love Actually before coming here,’ Bellamy’s eyebrows shot up disappearing into his hair. ’And in Christmas you tell the truth’. He kissed her again, no hesitation this time, although the mystery of who her male companion still remained.

* * *

They came out from his office a few minutes before midnight, Jasper and Monty barging in and dragging them away. Unsurprisingly, they were received with a roar of laughter and a round of applause.

Raven and Octavia got closer along with Clarke's friend who introduced himself as Wells. 

'Clarke's childhood friend,' completed Bellamy from a long-ago memory. 

'That's right,' Wells said shaking his hand. 

'Told you he'd remembered,' Clarked pointed out. 

Raven seemed ecstatic as she half hugged him. 'Told you a hundred times she was into you. There was chemistry, I'm never wrong with these things.  _And if you have chemistry you only need one thing._ '

Bellamy nodded, looking at Clarke, kissing her head softly. 'I know,  _timing,_ ' he quoted as Clarke looked at him. 

'And  _timing is a bitch_ '.

**Author's Note:**

> Merry Xmas! Hope you liked it, I won't lie and say and had the time of life writing this as it was my first time after soooo much time but I certainly enjoyed. I hope it is up to your expectations and that you do not find it too OoC. It is a bit of an irony on the actual canon bellarke and their never being canon due to this or that, and the final quote is precisely because of that (from HIMYM as you may have noticed). I think there's too much Raven and not enough Clarke but I found that interesting and did not know quite how to solve it. Hope you enjoy it nonetheless.  
> If you feel like it, simply shoot me an ask or a comment and I can share all the previous versions of this and also how this was so much longer and complicated than this. I cut unnecesary problems, such as a brief Finn appearance as the date and Nyla, beause originally this fic spanned for a few years as in Love, Rosie but it got too ambitious and I cut it all out, hope it stills makes sense and that you enjoy it :D  
> Have a terrific Christmas and a lovely new Year! It's been a pleasure filling out your prompt!


End file.
